


Atonement

by SecretCodeLyokan



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: A What If I've seen a comic of and read a fanfic, A sad what if, F/F, Genocide Run, I dunno really but I'll tag Frisk in this story, TW: Blood, TW: Violence, a really corrupted Frisk, also frisk is an asshole, also lots of violence, and goop, and heartbreaking moments which I hope will make you cry, and slow painful death, back at it again with the angst, just kidding, or Chara, swearing warning as always, this is my first time being ok with my writing-action lack of skill, tw: body horror
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-16
Updated: 2016-10-16
Packaged: 2018-08-20 07:39:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,584
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8241560
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SecretCodeLyokan/pseuds/SecretCodeLyokan
Summary: (Genocide route What If)The human is gone. Their HP has dropped to 0, their body is torn to shreds. A Happy Ending, even though at a high price.And no one ever expected that price to be so high...





	

She had never expected anything like this to happen.  
  
One moment she was dying, nearly cut clean in half, nearly accepting the dark wooden bridge as her tomb, the grave of a fallen Captain who couldn’t protect the monsters, her point of failure and sacrifice…and then, she could feel herself refusing and accepting, breaking and building, reforming and dismantling, her body uncertain about her fate. Her left eye, after so many years, opened, cutting a hole in her eye-patch as it did so, and it was then that she realized what she was supposed to do.  
A few seconds passed, and before Undyne and her opponent knew it, she was standing there, whole and healed, feeling stronger, more powerful, and most importantly…DETERMINED.  
  
Despite not really understanding what had just happened, she smiled at them, the Human –or whatever it was-, taunting them to try again, try harder.  
And then, the battle had truly begun.  
  
It had been a while since that transition now. She didn’t know how long it had been, how many times had she jumped, hit, or dodged, but inside her head, she knew it had been pretty long.  
  
And she wasn’t giving up soon; of course she wasn’t! What kind of heroine was she if she gave up? Especially with this given opportunity: how many times does one resurrect in the course of its life? And how often does it happen in a generation, or in a species? And what use would it be to waste this chance to make it right, just to throw it away, just to run from the danger that needed to be stopped?  
  
Concentrating only on her attack and her opponent, the black nothingness around them slowly faded away into more blackness to her eyes, until she forgot where was she, who exactly she was fighting and the time passing. The black then faded even more, getting foggy, blurry. But she wasn’t here to admire the change in background.  
Undyne soon found out that there was little to do in this battle; it was the same routine anyway, hit and dodge, hit and miss, hit and scars…and blood, sometimes. Scarlet blood, contrasting to the black and white she could barely glimpse.  
  
The Thing wasn’t doing very good, and she knew it; they only had a scrawny, puny little plastic knife, and it rarely hit hard. But they were determined, really determined, maybe even more than her, not to mention that their LOVE was the highest she had ever seen or heard of, a surprising high number…for a child (was it even a child? Only a child?) at least. And it was made by all of the people she had known or not known, including…  
  
Shaking the memory away, the heroine resurfaced back to reality just in time to block another attack, the spear in her hand clashing against the cold and dusty metal of the toy of her enemy, some of that greyish powder, their murderous mark, blowing in her face as it did so. She locked eyes with them, and wasn’t surprised to see the pits of darkness and emptiness in their place; her left eye twinkled, as the Thing pushed forward, trying to gain advantage and make her drop her weapon. She grunted and managed to toss them aside. However, it wasn’t quick enough and the knife touched her skin for a few seconds, a little above the left corner of her mouth.  
  
“You DEMON!” Undyne screamed, as spears surrounded the murderer; it would’ve been certain death for the killer, had they not got an idea and, using the closest one they had, managed to fend nearly all of them away. The Heroine gritted her teeth in anger, her heart pounding against her chest as she once again felt everyone left in the Underground, probably crowding in the Lab in Hotland, screaming for her to tear it to pieces.  
  
But, no matter what Demon was in front of her, she was going to respect the code. And accept the fact that it was the Thing’s turn.  
They jumped towards her and slashed towards her face; she managed just in time to cover it with her open palm before she could gain once again a blind eye.  
  
Smart move.  
  
Looking at the heavily bleeding palm, the Heroine mentally thanked her lucky stars she hadn’t taken the blow to her face: that slash had been a really powerful, bound to leave her with an even deeper scar. And it hurt really bad.  
  
Trying not to think about it, she clenched her hand tight into a fist, and once again took her turn and watched as her weapons hit or were defected.  
  
\------  
  
If she had already lost track of how much they had been fighting before, now Undyne was truly lost in the blurred blackness surrounding them, all hope to remember what the numbers and the handles twirling in a circle meant lost (or at least, at the bottom of her list of worries). She had lost count of the turns, the slashes, the wounds and the cuts and bends on her armour, but a small saner part deep inside her mind deduced it hadn’t been that long since her hand had been wounded. (Which wound though? Were there any wounds at all? And from what?)  
  
She took a second to contemplate what was really happening despite all of the hits and dodges, but immediately got her head back into that sick competition where their lives were at stake before she lost, something she must avoid at all costs.  
  
A blur? More like major astigmatism.  
  
_Is that even what “blur” means in this context?_  
  
Suddenly, she felt a shadow creep at her right. Her whole body tensed at that, while her eyes widened. Barely a second later, she jumped, turned around, and slashed madly her weapon in the direction that had caught her attention; she didn’t care what it had been, this was a battlefield! It shouldn’t have been there, it was dangerous! Go away, go away, she wanted to scream, go away!  
  
Needless to say, it took a while for Undyne to actually look at what she was slashing at, and consequently, for her to realise that there was nothing there.  
  
_Was someone really there? Or am I getting paranoid? Perfect, that’s all I need!_  
  
But that misunderstanding soon replaced anger with puzzlement, bafflement, shock, and a temporary amnesia: her brain, her sanity, that single part she had tossed aside, had suddenly resurfaced from the dark place it had been locked up to that point, as the glow in her eye died down and confusion overtook her along with a sense of loss; for a brief moment, the Heroine forgot where she was, what she was doing, why was she fighting in the first place. It only lasted a second, maybe two, though it seemed longer.  
  
But it was enough for the Thing.  
  
She gasped in pain when the blade struck her stomach once again, and the armour there bent even more; she clenched her spear with an already bloody hand and gritted her teeth, trying to ignore the stinging feeling and keeping herself stable in front of her adversary.  
  
_That’s gonna leave a mark…_  
  
“You think you’re smarter, heh?” she chuckled, with a half-closed eye, through her teeth, tossing a spear at them. “Do you know you’re doomed, you filthy creature?”  
  
The weapon was low, aimed at the murderer’s shoulder, so they stood a little to the left, easily dodging it as it flew towards them, all while not answering; suddenly just when they thought the turn was over, they felt wind whistling from behind and before they had time to think, they were caught by surprise and struck behind their back. Coughing blood, they fell to their knees, nearly dropping their weapon while doing so.  
  
They looked down for a few seconds, coughing and spitting, a snicker escaping their lips every now and then, then they rose their head, brushed away some leftover scarlet liquid on the corner of their lips and ran towards her, smiling widely. The knife was shining through one of their fingertips, and she could see their knuckles whitening, as they readied their blow.  
  
_Left. Imprecise. It’ll be…_  
  
“ **Die!** ” The Thing chuckled with shining eyes, as they slashed, but barely missed. Just as their smile and their playful look faded to be replaced by an expression of pure shock on their face, the Heroine grabbed their armed arm, and with a “Ngaaah!” of triumph, power and satisfaction, she tossed them further away as if they were no more but a feather.  
  
They landed on the wooden planks with a loud thump, and then rolled a few centimetres further; they tried to stand up at first, but only succeeded in stumbling, and falling flat on its face. Undyne watched with amusement, not moving, not even taunting, as it did so a few times; at one point, she noticed it was starting to manage to stay at least crouched and she raised her spear and bent her knees a little in a near-fighting stance, ready to fight.  
  
But, instead of standing up like she had expected it laid like it was, making only a few silent sounds, not moving another muscle. Curiously, she stood up, lowered her spear a little (though she still had her guard up, just in case) and approached her adversary to see what they were doing…  
  
She immediately regretted it.  
  
A hand was covering the Thing’s mouth, their own dusty, bruised and scratched hand to be exact, a few drops of blood escaping from the finger gaps; their shallow breathing meant they were still alive, but there was another sound which caught her attention; it was a sound Undyne had heard plenty of times coming out of children, grown-ups, Snowdin’s inhabitants, Papyrus, even hers and Alphys’s mouths.  
  
They were _laughing._ And not a cruel laugh that only a Demon like them could do. A kid laugh, as if they had just seen a funny TV Show, or had heard a joke.  
  
Was this a _game_ to them?  
  
Undyne bit her lip, then slightly opened her mouth to say (or, more likely, scream) something, only to immediately shut it, her teeth grinding against each other, and she resisted the urge (for reasons she didn’t, and hadn’t got the time to, understand) to impale them.  
  
A single, small, nearly invisible tear fell from her eye, and slipped from her bleeding cheek to the ground without a sound, dragging some blood with it.  
  
_You think it’s funny?_ she wanted to yell. _You think it’s funny to kill them all? To watch them burn? To stare as they dissolve, as they turn to dust? To be wounded, trialed, for your crimes? To kill my best friend? Die, go back where you belong, you worthless and soulless creature! You are not welcome here, nor you will ever be!_  
  
Her left eye shone brighter than ever, and the voices in her head and the pounding in her SOUL got louder and louder, slowly turning into screams and cries of pity, anger, rage, vengeance, hope…and there was also… _her_ voice. _Her_ voice pleading her not to go. _Her_ voice insisting it was too dangerous. _Her_ voice shaking on her shoulder, crying, stuttering more than ever as Undyne held her tight, trying not to squeeze her to death, not wanting to let go…  
  
But they… _it_ was too dangerous. The Captain couldn’t let it succeed and take away everyone she loved without a fight. It was why she had come here, after all: whether she now wanted to or not (why wouldn’t she anyway? Who wouldn’t?), it had to all end.  
  
She couldn’t stop, she couldn’t give up; not now, not ever. It was all going to be ok. She was going to kill it and then she would’ve come back, safe and sound, maybe a little battered, but near _her_ again. She had promised.  
  
She always kept her promises.  
  
The Heroine slowly walked back to where she had stood before, covering her left eye, which was now radiating an intense light, to avoid attracting _its_ attention. Her mind was made: she was going to do it now. Right now.  
  
No hesitation.  
  
No mercy.  
  
And certainly, no regrets.  
  
But, suddenly, as she was about to raise her hand, the blue and red spear in her hand seemed to quiver, and she realized it was her own hand that was causing it; then she gulped a little for reasons she couldn’t pinpoint. The glow vanished, and a warm feeling crept inside her…  
  
Why was she hesitating? She was supposed to end this! She _had_ to end this! No matter the consequences, for all the monsters, for their future…  
  
But the floor seemed so inviting…she was so tired…And…and what if she couldn’t make it? Was it worth it? The Thing was probably powerful, maybe it would break the rules and strike her, or survive and slash harder next turn, she could die, never see Alphys or Asgore again…her only family…  
  
_NO!_  
  
Her eyes narrowed, shaking any doubts away, as the Thing stood up, its dark pits staring, _taunting_ at the Heroine.  
  
“What’s the matter?” it asked, with a slightly distorted voice. “Is the Heroine scared? The famous, _beloved_ , _worthless_ Captain _quivering_?”  
  
It spat these words out loud as if they were poison; then, it laughed again and rubbed the blade of its knife against the soft wooden logs of the bridge.  
  
“What are you waiting for?”  
  
_Remember who you’re doing it for…_ a voice whispered in her head.  
  
“Are you waiting for Papyrus to come back? How naïve…”  
  
She closed her eyes, feeling her heartbeat and the voices screaming, chanting her name. It was now or never…  
  
“Or are you waiting for the right moment to cry out for help?”  
  
Another small and invisible tear rolled down her cheek at these words, remembering and picturing with her fantasy the countless slaughters and how she had failed to kill it hours before; another one wanted to make its way down, along with a whole river, but she tried to fight it back: it was no time to cry.  
  
“Don’t you see what you’re doing? You aren’t going to change _anything_ ”  
  
What is it saying? Why is it saying this?  
  
“If I return, if I choose not to…nothing will change”  
  
Stop it.  
  
“Why can’t you face the truth, you stupid fish-face? When will you stop being so _selFISH_?”  
  
This is no time for puns, you Demon…  
  
Undyne found herself backing away a little, uncertain of what was happening. She could feel the need to cry getting stronger, her mouth was tilting, her hands were shaking….  
  
_Quit it quit it quit it quit it QUIT IT!_  
  
“Mmm…” the Thing tilted its head, smiling. “You wish to go back to your friends, don’t you?”  
  
Shut up.  
  
“To Asgore…or should I say…to your _(it held out a hand and finger-quoted) ‘father’_?”  
  
SHUT UP!  
  
“Or maybe…” The Thing got quiet for a few seconds and dropped the hand; it then ran one of its fingers close to the blade of the knife, watching as dirty grey particles stuck to their torn skin. Their smile got even wider, its eyes narrowed slyly and gazed back upwards, as some goop ran down one corner of its mouth.  
  
“You wish to go back to _her_?”  
  
Said word came out slurred, even more taunting, tempting…  
  
Undyne squinted her eyes shut, as she suddenly felt a pain she didn’t know she was keeping locked inside her erupting from her wounds, and resisted the urge to crouch down and distract herself. Tears were starting to come out, bound to blur her vision…  
  
“The one you would risk your life for. The one whom depends on only you to live. The one you love with all your poor, shattering, useless SOUL…too bad, when you die, you won’t be able to see her again…” its eyes gleamed for a few seconds at said idea, then they narrowed in sympathy. It looked at the Heroine and half-frowned at her scrunched-up face. “Awww, now you wish you had told her sooner, huh?”  
  
Shut. The. Fuck. Up!  
  
“Welp, they do say life is a bit of a pain…”  
  
I SAID SHUT UP!  
  
The Heroine fought against all of the pain she was feeling, trying to keep herself steady, to regain her composure, her inner demons tamed; it was then that she truly realised how much health she had lost. She needed to act, quick.  
  
She _was_ going to do it.  
  
She _was_ going to defeat it.  
  
“Well, don’t worry, I’ll make sure to tell her just before she dies; and if you want, make her death more merciful”  
  
Her left eye snapped open in a burst of light, and the other glowed ever so slightly. Her mind was made now.  
mercy, honor…this Thing didn’t have them. And didn’t deserve them.  
  
_For Papyrus._  
  
_For Asgore._  
  
_For Alphys._  
  
The light got intense, illuminating half of the room for a split second, then returned to its normal glow. Clutching her spear, Undyne then waved her free hand in the air, the landscape around them lighting up in a bright shade of blue as dozens and dozens of her blue magic weapons materialised in front of the wretched monster-killer.  
  
“Get that murderer” she whispered, not even recognising her voice.  
  
The defenseless Thing had barely blinked to adjust to the light change when it was showered by the weapons, its chance of survival decreasing at the speed of light. It waved its little knife around, trying to cut through, to make it this turn…but there were too much. It started screaming, crying, and suddenly flatted themselves to the ground as much as possible and covering its head, probably as a last (useless) defence measure. Its sweater was soon getting mercilessly torn, as was their skin, their hair, their SOUL…  
  
It suddenly cracked.  
  
That was when the Spear Shower ended. Undyne flicked her fingers, and the remaining ones disappeared. Wiping sweat off her forehead, she looked at the weak shape on the floor, wondering if it…  
  
No.  
  
It was still alive. Barely, but alive.  
  
It was breathing ever so slightly, so it took some time for her to confirm the creature’s vital signs; torn to shreds and bloody all over, it hesitated for several minutes before rising to its knees…and nearly falling.  
  
Scrambling on the ground to maintain its balance, its fingers digging on the wooden floor of the bridge, the Thing stared at the small patch of dirty red liquid in front of it, as more drops fell from its mouth to add to it. Its eyes were wide open, and its expression was one of pure shock, terror, and fear.  
  
“No…” it seemed to mouth. “I was so close…”  
  
It grabbed its hair in desperation, trying not to fall on its face as it did, then immediately felt its heart, looked at its wounds, its hands and at its SOUL…no, it was done for, without a doubt.  
  
Out of rage and desperation, it let out a roar and threw its knife at the Heroine; the weapon cut against the same spot as before, breaking the armor and hitting the skin deep, 15 HP damage, but it didn’t matter anymore now: the Thing, the Demon, had lost, her HP was still half-way full, if not more.  
  
“You…” it snarled, both glaring at grinning at the standing figure in front of it. “You’ll…regret…this…”  
  
It then stumbled once again and fell flat to the ground, its torso splashing in a pool of its own blood; the moment it did, all of the objects it held in its pockets dropped out: Sea Tea, a Quiche which seemed homeless, various pieces of snow…all now scarlet red.  
  
Undyne didn’t notice that at first: she was too busy looking at the knife still plunged just above her stomach; with a flick of her hand, she removed it and tossed it aside, probably over the edge of the bridge, then examined her wound: not too deep, but it wasn’t insignificant.  
  
_Might need some medication soon…_  
  
The Heroine then noticed the items soaked in blood on the ground near the apparent corpse; she approached said area with caution (you never know) and hesitated for a few seconds before taking some Snow. She cringed at the sight of the dark red that covered the item she had just got, but deciding it was for the best, she sighed heavily and then used it to patch herself up a bit. It wasn’t much, but…better than nothing.  
  
After she was done, Undyne focused her attention on the limp body in front of her; she poked it with her spear and then bent down to check its pulse, just to be certain it was really and truly dead.  
  
It was.  
  
This fact struck her, and she immediately stood up; for a split second, she actually smirked, feeling proud, but then...she froze: was it true? Had had they really…won? It was over? No, it couldn’t be…  
  
But it was: she checked again, pulse, wounds, poking with spear, everything pointed towards death. Not to mention that there was also the most important proof, right in front of her, impossible to ignore: the SOUL that was floating close to the murderer, barely pulsing and with a deep gash crossing it horizontally.  
  
Her better eye widened, now all her attention on the red heart floating in mid-air; she had never seen a one of such color. Even less one that was dripping a darker liquid.  
  
She extended a hand to reach it, then remembered what happened when a monster touched a Human SOUL and quickly retracted the limb; absorbing the SOUL of that killer was the last thing she wanted to do. Not to mention that this Human SOUL, as stated before, was oozing black liquid, something really unusual. This had never happened, as far as she knew.  
  
But a part inside her, deep down…it seemed to know what it was.  
  
Determination.  
  
Darker Determination, to be exact.  
  
Yes, that was probably the answer. Another reason not to touch it or use it in any way. Maybe it could corrupt its host, or worse…  
  
Suddenly, before she had any chance to think of something else, a cry of victory made its way inside her mind, and she looked back at the Human’s corpse, then at the SOUL, back at the corpse, and so on, until she remembered…  
  
“I did it…”  
  
These three words barely escaped her lips, and it took a few seconds for her to remember what they meant.  
  
Undyne ripped her gaze away from the gore view to look at herself, the slightly-bleeding wound on her chest covered in red melting Snow, torn and bent parts lying here and there, her cracked and now scarlet gauntlet...it had been this. All this. Her power, her DETERMINATION, her will to still fight…it was thanks to that…that it was finally over and done.  
  
And thanks to her.  
  
"I did it”  
  
Once again, these words. But now she understood.  
  
“I did it!” She repeated for the third time, more loudly and radiant this time, raising her fists in the air. “I did it! I did it!”  
  
She screamed on the top of her lungs, happily, and span around a few times.  
  
“Alphys, Alphys!” she yelled. “I did it! I avenged them! See? I told you I was going to do it! You don’t have to worry anymore, it’s gone!” the Heroine sighed and smiled widely. “Man, the look on Papyrus’s face if I…”  
  
These words were lost when she remembered that the laughing skeleton wasn’t amongst the living anymore. At this, her heart went heavy for a few seconds, and her smile slowly fading away. If only…  
  
_Undyne, now’s not the time; you have to go back…_  
  
The wounds were starting to hurt again, and her limbs felt numb and tired. Yes, she needed a rest, she deserved it…  
  
_Back, right…back to rest_  
  
Her head was a mess inside: she could barely remember what she was doing, she had been in what seemed like another universe during the whole fight; and now that it was all over, everything felt so…unnatural?  
  
_Back…_ she repeated, a little less convinced than before. _Back…………….?_  
  
Undyne looked around, feeling a little bit disoriented for a few seconds. Her head was pulsing, but she knew…it was going to be ok…  
  
_Why wouldn’t it be? I made it, I made it…_  
  
The words danced around her head, over and over, as she slowly made her way towards the…the what?  
  
_The Lab!_ her head shot up, memories flashing before her, bringing her fully back to reality. _Alphys! She’s waiting for me!_  
  
As she passed by her opponent’s body, the Heroine looked back to the SOUL and its small weak light; she hadn’t expected a creature like that to have one, but there it was.  
  
Undyne stared at it for a while, then bit her lip and shook her head.  
  
“It won’t be any good” she said aloud what she had confirmed before. “It’s too dull…”  
  
They could still get another…  
  
This wasn’t important right now. She had killed the being before it could continue. And now she was going back.  
  
She went on.  
  
One, two, three steps.  
  
Her head started spinning, and she felt herself getting heavier and heavier. She must’ve lost too much HP…  
  
_C’mon, you can do it!_ A voice sharply whispered in her head.  
  
_Why wouldn’t I?_ She snapped back, holding her head. She grunted loudly, but tried to hide it with a snicker.  
  
_Man, it hurts_  
  
Four. Five. Six.  
  
_What’s wrong with you? Move!_  
  
It hurt. Everything hurt. Why? Maybe it really was the HP…  
  
But she had only lost barely half. Maybe some Dark Determination went into her system and was weakening her…?  
  
She had to go to the Lab. And fast. She needed to check nothing like that had happened. Not to mention…  
  
Not to mention…she wanted to see Alphys again…  
  
Seven. Eight.  
  
Hesitation.  
  
Stop, catch your breath.  
  
Finally, nine.  
  
_Why are you stopping?_  
  
_Shut up!_  
  
Ten. Eleven…  
  
…  
  
Breathless.  
  
Stopping.  
  
Panting.  
  
Continuing.  
  
Twelve.  
  
Armour is suddenly too heavy…  
  
All of the steps are a torture.  
  
The cuts and stabs hurt too much.  
  
Help.  
  
Someone.  
  
No.  
  
I can make it.  
  
It’s not that hard.  
  
Thirteen. Fourteen.  
  
Pain.  
  
So much pain.  
  
_You can rest later!_  
  
_Remember they’re waiting for you!_  
  
Fifteen.  
  
The light in the distance...are there the Echo Flowers?  
  
Were there any Echo Flowers on the bridge?  
  
No…was she hallucinating?  
  
_Nearly there…_  
  
Sixteen. Seventeen.  
  
Hesitation. Can’t go on…  
  
Hurts too much.  
  
No no no no no.  
  
I need to go forward.  
  
I can do it.  
  
But it hurts…  
  
_Comeoncomeoncomeoncomeoncomeon_  
  
Eighteen…  
  
Slowing down again.  
  
Can she make it?  
  
Nineteen…  
  
Come on…  
  
Come on come on come-  
  
“Ngah!”  
  
Undyne felt a sharp pain spread through her body, and she clutched her stomach wound in pain.  
  
“The Snow must’ve fallen off” she deduced aloud. “Maybe, I can dampen it when I…”  
  
She looked down to examine it.  
  
The Heroine had barely glanced at the burning part of her body when she let out a scream. It erupted throughout Waterfall, shaking the Echo Flowers from the Wishing Room and the snow blizzard from even further away.  
  
This…  
  
This couldn’t…  
  
How could…  
  
“No…”  
  
She quickly retracted her hand, gasping slightly when a few pieces remained stuck like glue, or dripped to the ground. Her head rose up along with her shaking limb, and she stared in horror as she watched her fingers slowly dripping pieces of her that either flowed on her wrists and arms or fell on the ground  
  
They were _melting_.  
  
“How…” she asked aloud the dreaded doubt, looking all over her body to see if…  
  
Yes, it was the same thing: The wounds were getting fuzzy, her boots were fusing with the ground, her whole body was slowly becoming unstable, like an ice block in Hotland. No wonder walking had been hard.  
  
But that wasn’t the last of her problems: all of this apparent melting…  
  
It was happening pretty fast.  
  
“I…I don’t understand…” Undyne mumbled. “I…I…”  
  
_Alphys will know what to do…_  
  
The Heroine nodded to herself, and tried to proceed forward, but ended up tripping in her own goop and landed on her knees and hands.  
  
“Ugh…” she mumbled, as she unstuck her hands from the ground, and, like before, leaving some parts behind, which melted into nothingness. “This is…this isn’t good at all…wh-what happened?”  
  
She tried standing up, but her knees were already permanently glued. And to make it worse, no matter how much she tried, she couldn’t budge from that position, her knees had now fused with the logs.  
  
“Ngah!” she yelled, her eye starting to shimmer. “I…need…to…get…back…”  
  
_Don’t force it!_ A voice whispered in her ear.  
  
“The Hell I…”  
  
_You’re melting faster, stop!_  
  
Her hair was starting to plaster on her shoulder. Undyne paused her actions, and looked around, rising up as best as she could, then she looks at her knees once again: they were far more drippy and unstable than before.  
  
“Dang it…” she muttered. “I really am stuck…”  
  
_No, no, no, no, no_  
  
Inside, she was freaking out: this wasn’t supposed to happen! It had _never_ happened! Why was it then? Had she done something wrong?  
  
Coming back to life…  
  
Maybe…maybe she couldn’t…she was…  
  
_No…Yes…No…maybe…no…yes…No, no, no, no, it can’t be happening…This…no…it just can’t…I can’t be…_  
  
She was dying. She hadn’t defied death, nor had she truly resurrected. She had just…slowed it down.  
  
_It’s…it’s over…?_  
  
Was it really happening? That one thing everyone feared? Was this…was this how heroes died?  
  
She had always lived knowing that this day was coming, since she was a small little fish kid; it was in the face of her parents, in the face of the Fallen Monsters, and in everyone’s SOULs, even if she couldn’t see it: it was coming, coming for all of them. And eventually show its face, to remind them all about it.  
  
Even Boss Monsters feared it; she could see it in Asgore, that fear, along with the fear of losing everyone, of disappointing…he just wanted to help everyone, to not see the face of Death on other monsters because of him.  
  
When she started training to be a Royal Guard, and when later she became part of it, she understood that feeling more than ever. That feeling was what woke her up every morning, to protect her loved ones and her race, even at the cost of never seeing them again…it was a promise she had made; a promise she had intended to keep…well, that she had kept, apparently.  
  
She had slaughtered that wretched demon, they were all saved…well, not everyone, that was the most frustrating part, and she wasn’t bound to forget that any sooner, but…they’d be proud of her, she knew it.  
  
Like her parents were.  
  
Like everyone alive was right now…  
  
Everyone…  
  
Everyone…  
  
This word echoed in her head, making it lower in shame and sadness.  
  
“Everyone…” she softly repeated.  
  
Alphys, Asgore, Gerson, Napstablook, everyone else…she would never see them again. Not even to say goodbye.  
  
Death was coming. It was taking her with it. And she was scared.  
  
Even more scared than she was before, while she was fighting; she had never thought to ever feel that scared of dying, so tense, so concentrated, so worried…yet here she was.  
  
She had so many things that she hadn’t let out; she should’ve known this time would’ve come, why did she hesitate before? Why?  
  
_Everyone…_ tears streamed down her eyes, and she giggled a little. _I did it, you should be proud, you’re safe; still…_  
  
Again, these terrible thoughts of her end. Her slow, painless, end…  
  
_I never even got to tell you…_  
  
The Heroine looked at her hands once again. She couldn’t feel them anymore, and this troubled her.  
  
“Pity you’ll have to watch this grotesque show…” she muttered to herself.  
  
Wait…  
  
Wait a second…  
  
_The cameras! They’re still watching!_  
  
Undyne’s eyes lit up, and she looked around, searching for a lens, metal, anything that might suggest the presence of one of Alphys’s spy cams. She couldn’t find anything, though.  
  
But, she was sure…they were still on, and they were still there, in the hideout, in front of the screen, staring, watching, glancing, maybe even crying. And she knew, Alphys was watching too. And if she wasn’t, well…someone could always pass the message.  
  
But what message? What was she supposed to say?  
  
She once again looked at her gloopy hands.  
  
_Not much time…but…_  
  
But what? Time for what?  
  
She shook her head, deciding that three-letter word had no place in the context, along with any other little meaningless doubt. She was dying, for God’s sake, she had said so inside her several times, she wasn’t going to hold back any secrets. Everything was going to come out, the Truth, her thoughts, her wishes…everything. (well, the most important things of course).  
  
The Heroine looked around, for a few seconds, hesitating.  
  
_Let’s hope they really are there; or at least that someone’s listening…_  
  
“Uhm…” She cupped her nearly melted hands around her mouth. “Alphys? Sans? Everyone? Can you hear me? I hope you can”  
  
She eventually decided to look in front of her, opposite from the corpse, straight ahead towards where she had seen the “Echo Flowers”. Maybe she would’ve looked stupid to her audience, but…they would’ve understood.  
  
And if they laughed, oh boy, was she going to…  
  
Oh, right, she couldn’t. But she knew others would shut them up for that.  
  
_Undyne, concentrate!_  
  
_Right…where was I?_  
  
The Heroine cleared her throat, then, hoping there were listening, started her “speech”:  
  
“So uhm…the reason that I’m talking is, that, you see, I…”  
  
Why was it so hard to tell someone you were probably never going to come back? How hard could it be to say “I’m dying”?  
  
But…did she really needed to say it out loud?  
  
Undyne hesitated for a second, and looked back at her knees: they were close to a puddle, and the rest of her legs were probably long forgotten. She chuckled as she looked back at the “camera”, locks of her hair falling on her face.  
  
“I…I’m kinda stuck…heh” _Sans, please don’t make any puns_ “…and I…I don’t think I can, you know…”  
  
Her face fell when she pictured how Alphys must’ve looked right then; she however shook that thought away and gulped. A cough escaped her lips, followed by other three, but she ignored them.  
  
“But…” she smiled. “I…I have some time…so…so listen carefully, please…I just want to tell you all a few things…”  
  
Suddenly, she violently started coughing, much more than before; she tried to cover her mouth, but every single muscle hurt, so she faced downwards, and waited until it was over. When it finally ended, she looked at the ground with watery eyes and, saw blood, mixed with a few…ugh, better not think about that.  
  
“Heh…” she snickered, trying to ignore and push away any signs of fear in her face: she didn’t want them to think about her gone. “Oops…gotta…gotta clean that later…sorry guys…”  
  
She coughed again; more blood came out, but she ignored it.  
  
“Uh…so…anyway…”  
  
Undyne took a deep breath, coughing a little more, and then started truly talking about what she had half-planned:  
  
“First, I just want to say…*cough cough cough*…thank you, every single one of you. You might…you might not know it, but…but it was thanks to you I was able to defeat the Human…*cough cough*…It just felt like…like you were inside me…or…or helping me putting the…*cough cough cough* the pieces back together *cough cough*…Also, I guess…you’re welcome for…for…you know…” she weakly pointed at the corpse lying not too far away with a half-smirk, then used the same hand to cover her mouth as she coughed again.  
  
_Undyne, don’t stop! Think about your time! And don’t distract them!_  
  
“Also…don’t use that SOUL to cross the Barrier: it’s too…*cough cough cough*…abnormal for my tastes”  
  
She grinned, despite the blood flowing down one corner of her mouth.  
  
“Uh…also…kids *cough cough cough* shouldn’t…. watch…this body horror…*cough cough* Uh…should’ve *cough* said that…sooner…”  
  
The Heroine chuckled a little, wondering if anyone else did; she doubted it, but she would never know.  
  
She looked away, her smile fading and her eyes closing; she peeked at her hands before doing so: nearly goop.  
  
“Heh…anyway…” Undyne looked at the opposite direction of the bridge, where she had rushed to save the small drake kid before he was murdered.  
  
“Could anyone…could anyone go to *cough cough*…go to Gerson later…tell him I…he was like a *cough cough cough*…like a father to me and *cough cough cough* I’ll always remember him…a-also…*cough cough* Thank him…thank him from me for being…*cough* for being there when *cough cough cough cough*”  
  
More blood splattered to the ground, prohibiting her from speaking any further; she also noticed her wounds were still bleeding.  
  
_Bad sign…_  
  
But she couldn’t stop smiling at that. Sure, she was in a hurry, but…death wasn’t scaring her anymore. She felt alright, happy, a little melancholic…she knew she might never see anyone for a long time, but…she could still feel everyone’s hearts beating as one. She could still feel them being brave for her. Tears spilled from her eyes.  
  
“Asgore…” she whispered. “Someone tell Asgore *cough cough cough* I…I stole his *cough cough* I was the one that stole his crown that…that one time”  
  
She laughed at what she had just said, shaking her head. “Man…*cough* I was such the…the troublesome hot-headed kid back then…*cough cough cough* But seriously?” she looked back at the “camera”, putting a melted hand on her melted chest. “Tell Asgore *cough* Tell him that it was an honor…*cough cough* an honor to…to work…and to thank him…*cough* Thank him for…for the chance he *cough cough* he gave me *cough cough cough cough*…for…for all he…he did to me…” her voice then lowered to a soft whisper, and a tear mixed with goop rolled down her cheek.  
  
“I…I love you Dad…”  
  
She coughed again, but wiped the blood oozing from her mouth right away.  
  
“I also…” she turned back. “I also…*cough cough* I also want…want to speak to…to the Kid I…I saved today…”  
  
She grinned. “*cough cough* Hope you’re still alive, punk; it would’ve *cough cough cough* it would be unfortunate if you…you weren’t” she grinned. “Dying after *cough cough* after all of that hustle to save you? Wow, *cough cough cough* talk about ingratitude” her smile got wider, but it soon started dripping as well…and she also had to stop as another cough attack came “*cough cough*…just…just kidding”  
  
_Partly_  
  
“*cough cough cough* Sorry you …you had to see me that way, and now like…like this; you *cough cough cough cough* You had some courage though…facing the Human…maybe…maybe one day…you can join the *cough cough cough* the Royal Guard…”  
  
Her face slightly fell, but she managed to still smile again, imagining how bright Monster Kid’s eyes must be looking right now, despite the tears: after all, she had heard that kid basically worshipped her.  
  
“My…my best friend *cough cough cough*…he was pretty tough, he could’ve made it…*cough cough cough* You sort of remind…remind me of him a little…*cough cough* Keep it up, one day, and maybe…*cough cough cough cough* You…you can be Captain, just like *cough cough*”  
  
She stopped talking, as her cough got violent for a few seconds. Her hands (or rather, her wrists) brushed the bridge as she glanced down, blood and liquid splattering all over the place; she then raised her face again, and realised a strand of hair was now stuck right in the middle of her face, like cutting it in half.  
  
“Also…” she proceeded, ignoring this detail. “I…*cough cough cough* I was planning to…*cough cough* Actually, I wasn’t…*cough cough* But…*cough cough* Asgore can…can decide who…who will be the next…the next successor *cough cough cough* The next Captain, I mean…”  
  
Her smile partly fell, as she recalled an old memory.  
  
\-----  
  
_It had been some years ago, when she was just appointed as Captain. Asgore was passing by her house, and she had invited him for tea. She remembered that day with great joy.  
  
“Hey Asgore” she had asked, as she prepared some tea. “I was wondering, about my job…”  
  
“We already talked about this, Undyne” Asgore smiled. “I’m sure you won’t be having any problems, I know you; and even if you ever need help…”  
  
“No, I mean…” The warrior hesitated for a few seconds, before sighing and letting it out: “Who will replace me?”  
  
At these words, Asgore nearly literally fell off his chair; his eyes widened, and asked if she could repeat her statement to make sure he had heard correctly.  
  
“Undyne…” he said once she had confirmed it. “You…you’re not sick…right?”  
  
“No, but…” she shrugged. “I dunno…what if I lose a limb, or…”  
  
She barely finished her phrase when she was grabbed by her wrist and violently thrust less than a centimetre away from the King.  
  
“I chose you for a reason” he stated, sternly. “You’re the best warrior we could ever have: you’re determined, you are passionate, you’re the best fighter, you’re strong, you’re a good and stern teacher, and, most importantly, you know what’s best for everyone and yourself”  
  
The fish lady didn’t say anything, just stared at him; he slowly let her go, and wiped away a tear.  
  
“There’s no one out there like you” he continued. “And it’s…it’s too late to think of replacements; just…just stay alive…please?”  
  
“Asgore…”  
  
Undyne suddenly felt guilty when he broke down crying; she weakly smiled and hugged him, a small tear escaping her own eye as she did.  
  
“Ok, then…I’ll…I’ll do my best…” _  
  
\-----  
  
“I’m so sorry, Asgore” she looked away, ashamed. “But we…*cough cough* we both knew this…*cough cough cough* this day would come…”  
  
Her heart felt heavy, and she could feel her thighs sink into near nothingness. She didn’t have much time now.  
  
“W-w-wait!” she screamed to no one in particular. “I…I’m not finshed! *cough cough cough*”  
  
Why did she say that? It wasn’t going to slow down Death. Her fate was sealed, why was she begging it to stop? Who was she begging to stop? Them, those watching?  
  
It didn’t matter right now; she wasn’t going to die before…before…  
  
“Alphys!” she screamed. “Alphys, tell *cough cough cough cough*tell me you’re watching! Some…*cough cough* Somebody fetch her!”  
  
She then hesitated, hoping the scientist hadn’t left: knowing her, maybe she did, just so she couldn’t see her friend die. But if she didn’t…then good job to her.  
  
After a few seconds of waiting, Unyne figured out it would’ve been enough for someone to fetch and get back her…her love to the screen; so she proceeded talking.  
  
“Al..Alphys *cough cough cough*” her SOUL was aching. She couldn’t’ tell if it was because of what she was about to say or her End acting on her.  
  
“We…we’ve known each other *cough cough cough cough* for a long ti *cough cough* time now…I…I think…I *cough cough* can’t remember…” the Heroine slightly shook her head. “And…and *cough cough* and I just want you to know…*cough cough cough cough* You…you’re the most amazing monster I have ever met!”  
  
“I *cough* I don’t care if you…if you think *cough* if you think you’re worthless; when I’m *cough cough* when I’m with you, I feel *cough* I can feel, I can see…I can see that person you are: that passionate *cough cough* awkward little scientist that is my…my second best friend *cough cough*”  
  
Undyne smiled widely again, as something ran down both of her cheeks; she couldn’t tell if it was goop or tears.  
  
“You *cough cough* you sometimes think you’re…*cough cough* you’re…you’re both worth it, but…*cough cough*…but I believe in you! You’re *cough cough cough* You’re wonderful…whatever you say…whatever you might think of yourself that *cough cough* that is terrible…*cough cough cough* please remember…remember it…*cough cough cough* it doesn’t matter at all *cough cough cough* Think about….about the things good about yourself: your passion, your…your knowledge *cough cough cough* and everybody makes mistakes…and whichever you make…*cough cough cough* I…I don’t care; remember, again, I *cough cough* I believe in you, you’ll always *cough cough* the best monster to me…*cough cough cough* at least, that…that still lives, hahahaha…”  
  
The Heroine chuckled, and then suddenly fell silent for a few seconds. Now, the hard part…  
  
She could feel more rivers running down her cheeks, but tried grinning anyway, to give herself courage…to give _her_ courage.  
  
“Alphys, I…*cough cough* as I said before, you’re…you’re an amazing person *cough cough cough* and one of my…of my biggest regrets is…*cough cough cough* is not meeting you sooner…not…not getting to know…to know you more…*cough cough cough*”  
  
_You can do this!_  
  
“Also, I wish…*cough cough* Damn, I…I am feeling so many regrets now, but…*cough cough cough* this is my biggest…my biggest one…*cough cough cough* And by that I mean…*cough cough* I mean not telling you how I…how I feel…*cough cough cough cough*”  
  
She could sense the scientist’s gaze, piercing her from behind her glasses, staring at her, crying probably; it’s as if she was in front of her right then, right now, as if it wasn’t in this situation, but…as if it was…as if it was back at the garbage dump.  
  
This was a ridiculous thought, but her brain was probably mush by now, so really there was no surprise she was thinking crazy things. For all she knew, a dancing Mettaton could appear in her train of thoughts at that very moment.  
  
_That would be terrible_  
  
Suddenly, Undyne started wishing more than everything right then and now that this was all a dream. There was too much pain, too many regrets…But she knew better…  
  
“Alphys…*cough cough*” her smile slowly became a sad one, and she felt weaker than ever. Regrets piled in her SOUL, and her stupid desire for it to be all a dream got stronger. She timidly raised one of her arms, longing to stretch her fingers towards her, to touch her one last time, feel her, assure her, maybe even kiss her…  
  
For a second, the words were clogged, stuck in her throat; she was going to break down, she could feel it. But then, after another cough, she managed to let it all out:  
  
“Alphys, I love you; I’ve loved you since the first time we met and I will always will”  
  
There was a moment of silence after that, and she half-wished she could see the scientist’s face in that moment; was it shocked? Or surprised? Angry? Or was it…sad? Heartbroken, even?  
Could it be that…that Alphys felt the same for her?  
  
_Can she ever forgive me for doing this to her?_ Undyne wondered. _Can anyone forgive me?_  
  
She could feel her voice once again getting stuck into her throat, and she coughed more, knowing that her life was going to be over soon: she could feel what was left of her body starting to dismantle, and it felt terrible. She grunted, as a pain soared up in her chest and looking down, she realised her old wound, the very first one which had caused all of this goopy mess, was resurfacing.  
  
But they didn’t need to see that. She needed to distract them, again, now.  
  
Somehow, the Heroine was able to get back control of her tongue and resisted the urge to cry, as she continued talking.  
  
“I’m sorry, Al…” she blurted out. “I’m sorry I couldn’t…*cough cough cough* I couldn’t tell you sooner…*cough cough* Please stay brave…*cough cough* Please forgive me…forgive *cough cough* forgive yourself for…*cough cough cough* for whatever you *cough cough cough cough* did…*cough cough*”  
  
Her coughs were getting too violent. It was time, soon…  
  
_They don’t need to think about this…_  
  
But Undyne couldn’t think of anymore to say; she pondered for a few seconds, making a mental list of all of her friends; a single name dawned on her suddenly, and her eyes widened.  
  
“Wait a second! *cough*” she said, again, unsure once again why she said that. “Tell Sans that…that I’m *cough cough cough* I’m sorry for *cough cough* Papyrus; tell *cough cough* that I *cough cough cough cough* I did it. And * cough cough cough* take *cough cough* care of *cough cough* of him *cough cough*”  
  
That was it. That was all she could think of saying.  
  
Her death was getting closer; she could feel it even more now. Any second.  
  
She hesitated, then smiled one last time: “Please, everyone, don’t…don’t look at me right now…for your sake…”  
  
She lowered her head, and closed her eyes. She could still hear their hearts beating all in unison, beating for her, and for a moment, she felt at the top of the world, she felt like she could accomplish anything, defy death one more time, rebuild herself, go to Hotland and tell them everything was alright, tell Alphys it was all alright, but…but then she felt herself stop melting. Breaking.  
  
She wished she couldn’t disappear. She wished once again it was all a nightmare, there, she might wake up any second. She wished it could’ve come many years later, when she had lived her life fully, or when she had spent more time with everyone, Papyrus, Asgore, Alphys…she just wanted one more chance, one more chance to not hold anything back, to confess everything as soon as possible.  
  
She was scared again, she was crying, she wanted to scream, but she tried to be brave, for all of them. They were still watching her for sure, or at least some of them were, she didn’t want to appear weak.  
  
She wanted to remain strong, for all of them. The monsters she had saved. The monsters who were going to lose her and had already lost friends and family. And deep down, they were all proud of her for stopping that creature; she had to feel proud. She was. She just wished there was more time left for her to tell them she was sorry she couldn’t do anymore.  
  
But moment she collapsed into dust, she knew it was truly over.

 _ **Knowing in another life**_  
  
_**In another life,**_  
  
_**Things were happier…**_

**Author's Note:**

> Ok, I want to apologise again for any errors in this one. I kinda procrastinated on the day I wanted to update it, and in the end, I only had time to put the HTML because of all th days, I picked a Sunday Evening (yay me). So sorry, I'll promise I'll fix this soon and hopefully I haven't disappointed or disgusted you :/  
> Also, in case you wanted to know...well, I was inspired by this cool slow, sad, etc. remix that you can find right here --- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QBrk1vsayvE and also a fanfic (which I unfortunately forgot what it was called, but you can find it on Fanfiction.net) and this comic ---- http://ian621.deviantart.com/art/after-575371324  
> Oh, and btw, about my multi-chapter fanfic...yeah, I'll try to update that as soon as I can. Sorry it's taking so long, I just get stuck into this angst hole sometimes and forget to get out and write something less...angst-y...not to mention school is ugh...BUUUUUT...I'm working on it, pinky promise.  
> Anyways, I hope you enjoyed this one-shot and I'll see you in the next story. *Secret hands over tissues just in case they were needed* Bye Punkees!


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